Trees and New Houses - Trust Annual Report 1985
We are lulled into a false sense of security over the trees in Winchester. Most of the important groups of trees are protected by Tree Preservation Orders and their contribution to the amenities of the City is stressed in the landscape proposals.
Unfortunately, this protection is of very little value when a site is developed. New houses are laid out to obtain maximum return on the land. A tree survey is often commissioned and the developer pays lip service to keeping the best of the existing trees on the site. But even if the retained trees are not damaged or killed through carelessness during the building operations, the moment the houses are occupied the applications to fell or lop the surviving trees flood in, as has been seen at Denham Court and Monmouth Square.
Among the reasons given are: the trees are too close to the houses, even overlapping their roofs; the gardens lack sunlight; roots are damaging the houses or drives. More often than not permission is given with the condition that a replacement tree must be planted, usually of a smaller, suburban variety. However, the Council is not able to monitor this at all strictly.
Much greater thought needs to be given to the positions of the houses in relation to any trees which are to be retained when planning applications are submitted. It only devalues TPOs to allow them to be overturned so easily. Developers selling houses on plots with protected trees should have to inform the purchasers in writing of their obligations regarding those trees, and if they do not require wooded shady gardens they should seek a different type of property.
